BACKGROUND TO THE SHOW

INCLUDES:

SCENE SYNOPSIS

MEET THE CHARACTERS

JOURNEY TO THE STAGE

ORIGINS

INSPIRATIONS

MEET THE CREATIVE TEAM

GLOSSARY

SCENE SYNOPSIS: ACT 1MARKETPLACE OF AGRABAHA mysterious storyteller welcomes the audience to the ancient city of Agrabah (Arabian Nights). A poor but street-wise young man named Aladdin is caught stealing a loaf of bread in the marketplace. He narrowly escapes the guards with the help of his friends and fellow thieves: Babkak, Omar and Kassim (One Jump Ahead). A royal entourage appears, with Prince Abdullah on his way to woo Princess Jasmine. Aladdin gets in the way and the Prince mocks him bitterly. Aladdin realises he must try to change his life for the better and makes a promise to his deceased mother (Proud of Your Boy).

THE PALACEThe villainous royal vizier, Jafar, and his lackey, Iago, lament the arrival of Prince Abdullah. If Jasmine chooses the Prince, the vizier will no longer be next in line for the throne. Luckily for Jafar, Jasmine refuses the Prince and swears to marry only for love. The Sultan decrees she must obey the law and marry a prince, so Jasmine decides to run away (These Palace Walls). Desperate to gain control of the kingdom, Jafar finds a spell to lead him to a lamp holding an all-powerful genie. To get to the lamp, they will need the help of the “Diamond in the Rough,” who is revealed to be Aladdin.

MARKETPLACE OF AGRABAHAladdin and his friends busk for money, attempting to make a living without stealing (Babkak, Omar, Aladdin, Kassim). Amid the commotion, Jasmine, who has adopted a disguise and appears in the crowd, meets Aladdin. Aladdin shows her around, and Jasmine takes an apple from a vendor’s cart as a gift for Aladdin. The vendor apprehends Jasmine for stealing, but Aladdin helps her escape and brings her to his hovel.

ALADDIN’S HOVELThe two runaways share their experience of feeling trapped (A Million Miles Away). When the guards find them, Jasmine removes her disguise and demands Aladdin’s release, but the guards will only obey the Sultan. Jasmine leaves for the palace at once. Jafar and Iago, having observed Aladdin’s capture, don disguises and bribe the guards to release Aladdin to them. They then convince Aladdin to fetch the magic lamp (Diamond in the Rough) from the Cave of Wonders. Aladdin finds the lamp, but touches a necklace that reminds him of Jasmine, causing the cave to collapse. Trapped inside, Aladdin rubs the lamp and releases the Genie (Friend Like Me), who helps his new master escape the cave. Meanwhile at the palace, Jafar tells Jasmine that Aladdin has been executed for attempting to kidnap the Princess. Jasmine is distraught and promises to fire Jafar when she becomes Queen.

THE DESERTAladdin asks Genie for advice and discovers that a genie can only be freed of his servitude if his master wishes it so. Aladdin promises he will do it, and Genie grants the first of Aladdin’s three wishes by turning him into a Prince, thus making him eligible for Jasmine’s hand in marriage. Aladdin senses that his luck will finally change for the better (Act One Finale).

Photography by Johan Persson

SCENE SYNOPSIS: ACT 2THE PALACEDisguised as Prince Ali of Ababwa, Aladdin arrives at the palace with fanfare and impresses the Sultan (Prince Ali), but Jasmine resists following anyone’s orders. Now part of Ali’s entourage, Kassim advises Aladdin to be honest with the Princess. Aladdin refuses and Kassim, Omar and Babkak return to the marketplace. Genie appears and encourages Aladdin to be himself now that he’s in the palace, but Aladdin, afraid that Jasmine won’t think highly of a street-rat, commits to his “Ali” act.

Jafar and Iago plot to get rid of this latest suitor and question Ali’s heritage. They send him to Jasmine’s chambers, which will cause him to break the law by trespassing. “Prince Ali” gains Jasmine’s trust and invites her to ride on a magic carpet (A Whole New World). Returning to the palace, they agree to marry in the morning and bid farewell.

As Aladdin revels in his success, the guards seize him on Jafar’s orders. Omar overhears Aladdin’s capture and runs to the marketplace for help. Babkak, Omar and Kassim decide to storm the palace (High Adventure), but are ultimately apprehended and thrown into the dungeon. Aladdin summons Genie to use his second wish to free him and his friends (Somebody’s Got Your Back). Aladdin agrees to free Genie as soon as he comes clean to Jasmine.

While Genie retreats to the lamp to pack his bags, the guards recapture Babkak, Omar and Kassim. Jasmine tells the Sultan she has fallen in love. Thrilled, the Sultan prepares for the wedding and Ali’s ultimate ascension to the throne. Overwhelmed by the sudden pressures of ruling a kingdom, Aladdin tells Genie that he must save his final wish for himself, just in case. Jafar and Iago overhear Aladdin and, realising he is the “diamond in the rough”, steal the lamp at the first opportunity.

The next morning at the wedding, Jafar, having taken possession of Genie and captured Jasmine, reveals Aladdin’s true identity (Prince Ali – Reprise). Jafar uses his second wish to become Sultan and seizes the royal throne. Aladdin tricks Jafar into wishing to become a genie… forever trapping him inside a lamp of his own! With Genie’s lamp back in hand, Aladdin uses his final wish to free his friend. He then promises to be true to Jasmine, if she’ll have him. The initially reluctant Sultan now grants his consent, gives Jasmine equal ruling power, and everyone lives happily, and freely, ever after (Finale Ultimo).

Photography by Matt Crockett

MEET THE CHARACTERS

GENIEThe Genie of the Lamp is

quick-witted, fast talking and all-powerful. He yearns for his

freedom, and befriends his new master of the lamp, Aladdin.

BABKAKAladdin’s friend and

fellow thief, Babkak thinks only of food.

IAGOJafar’s lackey is always

ready to assist his boss in an evil plan.

OMARAladdin’s friend and

fellow thief, Omar is more timid than his companions.

JAFARThe Sultan’s advisor schemes

to take possession of the throne through any means necessary.

KASSIMAladdin’s friend and

fellow thief, Kassim is tough as nails.

SULTANThe kind-hearted, widowed ruler of Agrabah, the Sultan values tradition and the law.

JASMINEAn intelligent young Princess who seeks a life beyond the

confines of privilege.

ALADDINA resourceful but reluctant thief, Aladdin seeks a life beyond the

confines of poverty. His best friends are Babkak, Omar

and Kassim.

Photography by Deen Van Meer

JOURNEY TO THE STAGE: OVERVIEWWhile lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken were achieving great success with their work on Disney’s The Little Mermaid (1989), they enthusiastically drafted an outline for a new animated movie. This one would be based on the famous legend “Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp” from One Thousand and One Nights, a collection of ancient Arabian folk tales that were compiled and translated by Antoine Galland in the 18th century. The songwriters’ outline was also inspired by the adventure-filled early film adaptations of the tale, such as The Thief of Baghdad (1940), which used cutting-edge technology to create magical special effects. The outline drew inspiration from Road to Morocco (1942) and Arabian Nights (1942).

After Ashman passed away in 1991 and the movie evolved under the direction of Ron Clements and John Musker, many of Ashman and Menken’s original ideas and songs were set aside. However, Disney’s Aladdin became a box-office hit when it premiered in 1992, and included three Ashman/Menken songs and two by Menken and lyricist Tim Rice. One of those songs, A Whole New World, topped the Billboard® charts, UK top 40 and won an Academy Award® the following year.

In 2009, Disney Theatrical Group decided to bring Aladdin to the stage as a full-length musical. It enlisted book writer and Tony®-nominated lyricist Chad Beguelin to help weave some of the original Ashman/Menken elements into the version of the story people had come to know and love from the film. On stage, Aladdin and Jasmine would be somewhat older, and the Menken/Ashman ballad Proud of Your Boy would show another side of the hero’s character. The Genie would return to a classic jazz showman in the tradition of Fats Waller and Cab Calloway, who originally inspired this iconic character in the Ashman outline. The parrot Iago would become a human lackey to Jafar. The monkey Abu would be replaced by Aladdin’s three street-rat pals, who sing Babkak, Omar, Aladdin, Kassim and High Adventure. Beguelin would adapt lyrics where necessary and ultimately write four brand-new songs with Menken to complete the musical’s score.

A developmental reading of Aladdin with professional actors during the autumn of 2010 prompted a pilot production at Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre. Veteran director/

choreographer Casey Nicholaw conceived, assembled, cast, rehearsed and mounted a classic musical comedy in record time. Aladdin’s run in the summer of 2011 was a successful proof-of-concept. So while the creative team focused on improvements, Disney developed plans to bring Aladdin to Broadway after an 8-week out-of-town try-out in Canada.

With a new scenic design by Bob Crowley, lighting design by Natasha Katz, costume design by Gregg Barnes, sound design by Ken Travis and illusions by Jim Steinmeyer, Aladdin had a spectacular opening at Toronto’s Ed Mirvish Theatre on 20th November 2013. But the team continued to work.

Menken and Beguelin even wrote a new introductory song for Jasmine to replace Call Me a Princess. Actress Courtney Reed learned These Palace Walls in a few days, and the song went into the show two weeks after opening night.

Aladdin ended its popular run in Toronto on 5th January 2014, and the company, set, and costumes made their way back to the U.S. and into the New Amsterdam Theatre. Aladdin opened there on 20th March 2014. Since then Aladdin has opened in Tokyo on the 24th May 2015, in Hamburg, Germany on 6th December 2015 where it is produced by The Disney Theatrical Group’s partner Stage Entertainment, and on 15th June 2016 Aladdin opened in London’s West End.

Alan Menken and Tim Rice

Howard Ashman and Alan Menken

Production stills for 1992 Disney film Aladdin Production stills for 1992 Disney film Aladdin

JOURNEY TO THE STAGE: ORIGINSThe Aladdin story, on which the West End musical is based, has its origins in One Thousand and One Nights. Although the stories were compiled by Antoine Galland, a French translator, around 1710, the tales themselves are much older having been passed down for generations. The adventures of a street boy who uses genie-power to win a kingdom and a princess is one of the most popular tales found in this collection of classic stories from the Islamic Golden Age. Interestingly, no definitive Arabic source has ever been found for the story. Aladdin was added to the book, along with “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves” and “Sinbad the Sailor,” by Galland who claimed to have heard Aladdin from a Syrian storyteller.

In the original collection, Aladdin is set in China, though all the characters have Arabic names and the country uses Islamic law. China represented the land most distant from the original listeners’ homeland (nothing further east was known) and was probably chosen to emphasise the great distances travelled by the characters and the otherworldly use of magic. Before the convenience of modern travel and the internet, China seemed like a far off, magical land.

One Thousand and One Nights is a collection of stories with a framing device. A legendary Persian woman named Scheherazade, sentenced to death in the morning, delays her execution by telling cliffhanger tales to the Sultan. In the original Aladdin story, there are two genies and two wicked sorcerers. For Scheherazade, the longer the story the better, which might explain why the original plot is more complicated than some future adaptations. After telling the Sultan a thousand stories, and delaying her execution for a thousand nights, she has no more tales to tell and prepares for her death. By then, the Sultan has fallen in love with her, and Scheherazade becomes his queen on the 1001st night.

Aladdin has served as the basis for stage plays, musical suites, ballets, and over two dozen movies, including the earliest surviving animated feature, a 1926 German film called The Adventures of Prince Achmed.

There is even a Bollywood version from the 1960s, in which Aladdin teams up with Sinbad for some crazy adventures (and musical numbers) and finally marries the Genie, who in this version is a beautiful woman.

In 1992 the Disney feature animated film Aladdin opened in cinemas worldwide. Disney’s creative team took an entirely new approach to the story, and simplified the more complicated plot of the original tale. Only one genie made the cut, and the two wicked sorcerers from the original story were combined to create the wicked vizier, Jafar. The setting moved from China to a fictional Arabian city called Agrabah, and elements like a magic flying carpet were borrowed from other One Thousand and One Nights tales. The creative team also adapted the story into a musical, with an iconic score composed by Alan Menken.

And now Disney’s Aladdin is a West End musical. Aladdin has come a long way since its origins in Scheherazade’s tales, but at its heart it has remained a magical story of honesty, bravery and adventure.

Adapted from an article by Albert Evans, with permission from The 5thAvenue Theatre.

Illustration by Edmund Dulac.

Illustration by Edmund Dulac.

JOURNEY TO THE STAGE: INSPIRATIONSIn addition to drawing inspiration from One Thousand and One Nights, Aladdin was also influenced by early film adaptations of the story, and other films of the period set in far-off “Arabia”.

FILMThe Thief of Baghdad (1940) is a British film by Alexander Korda based on Douglas Fairbanks’s 1924 film of the same title. After being tricked and cast out of Baghdad by the evil vizier Jafar, King Ahmad joins forces with a young thief named Abu to reclaim his throne, the city and the Princess he loves. The film won Academy Awards for Cinematography, Art Direction, and Special Effects, and was the first to use blue-screen technology. Howard Ashman cited The Thief of Baghdad as an inspiration.

Road to Morocco (1942) is a comedic feature film starring Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour. In the film, two carefree castaways find themselves on a desert shore in an Arabian city, where they compete for the affection of Princess Shalmar. Road to Morocco was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Writing/Best Original Screenplay.

Arabian Nights (1942) produced by Walter Wanger, has been described as a Western set in the Arabic world. The story surrounds the ruler of Baghdad, who must go into hiding with a group of travelling performers when his brother usurps the throne. Both brothers desire a beautiful dancing girl, Scheherazade, who is torn between power and true love. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards including Best Cinematography and Best Music.

In adapting the character of the Genie for the stage, the creative team turned to the original inspiration for the Disney animated film character: classic jazz showmen Fats Waller and Cab Calloway.

MUSICFats Waller (1904-1943) was a popular comedic entertainer, jazz pianist and singer. One of the few jazz musicians to win wide commercial fame, Fats Waller made hundreds of recordings with his band and often had his work appear in Broadway revues. His best-known songs Ain’t Misbehavin’ and Honeysuckle Rose were inducted into the GRAMMY® Hall of Fame in 1984 and 1999. He was known not only for his songwriting, but also for his flamboyant and witty performance style.

Cab Calloway (1907-1994) was a jazz singer and bandleader, known for his combination of energetic scat singing, improvisation and more traditional vaudeville-style vocals. Calloway performed in films throughout the 1930s and 1940s, and later went on to perform in musical theatre, including the revival of Porgy and Bess in 1952. His trademark song, Minnie the Moocher, is considered by some to be the first recording to feature scat singing.

Photograph by Carl Van Vechten

Photograph by Alan Fisher

JOURNEY TO THE STAGE: TIMELINE 1710 - 20161710One Thousand and One Nights, a collection of stories including “Aladdin” is compiled and translated by Antoine Galland.

JANUARY 1988Howard Ashman and Alan Menken submit a film treatment based on the story of “Aladdin” from One Thousand and One Nights. The treatment included three best friends for Aladdin (Babkak, Omar, Kassim), as well as a genie based on the great Cab Calloway.

NOVEMBER 1992Aladdin opens in cinemas and quickly becomes the most successful film of 1992.

MAY 1994The Return of Jafar is released as a direct-to-video sequel to Aladdin – this is the first direct to-video release for The Walt Disney Company.

SEPTEMBER 1994 - NOVEMBER 1995An “Aladdin” animated series airs for two seasons on CBS, and is later shown on Disney Channel. The plot of the series picks up at the conclusion of The Return of Jafar.

AUGUST 1996Due to the popularity of The Return of Jafar, Aladdin and the King of Thieves is released direct-to-video. This sequel is inspired by the One Thousand and One Nights tale Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.

JANUARY 2003Disney’s Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular, a 45-minute stage show, opens at Disney’s California Adventure Park, where it has played for the last 11 years. Chad Beguelin writes the book.

MAY 2004Aladdin JR., a 60-minute licensed show designed for middle-school performers, is released. The title has received over 6,000 productions worldwide, totalling over 20,000 performances.

EARLY 2009Beguelin meets with Menken, who advocates going back to the original treatment he and Ashman pitched for the film for a new stage version. Beguelin begins revising his work towards this new concept.

JANUARY 2010Disney Theatrical Group releases both Aladdin KIDS, a 30-minute show designed for primary school performers, and Aladdin: Dual Language Edition, a 70-minute version in English and Spanish.

OCTOBER 2010A successful developmental reading of Aladdin prompts the exploration of a full theatrical production.

JULY 2011A pilot production of Aladdin opens at the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle, WA. This full-length stage version features elements of Ashman’s first treatment.

MARCH 2014Aladdin opens on Broadway.

MAY 2015Aladdin opens in Tokyo.

DECEMBER 2015Aladdin opens in Hamburg, Germany produced by Disney Theatrical Group’s partner Stage Entertainment.

JUNE 2016 Aladdin opens in London’s West End.

MEET THE CREATIVE TEAMALAN MENKEN (MUSIC)Theatre: God Bless You Mr. Rosewater; Little Shop of Horrors; Real Life Funnies; Atina: Evil Queen of the Galaxy; Kicks; The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz; Beauty and the Beast; A Christmas Carol; Weird Romance; King David; Der Glöckner Von Notre Dame; The Little Mermaid; Sister Act; Leap of Faith and Newsies. Film: Little Shop of Horrors; The Little Mermaid; Beauty and the Beast; Newsies; Aladdin; Pocahontas; The Hunchback of Notre Dame; Hercules; Life with Mikey; Lincoln (TV miniseries); Home on the Range; Noel; Enchanted; Shaggy Dog; Tangled and Mirror Mirror. Songs: Rocky V; Home Alone 2 and Captain America. Awards: eight Oscars® (19 nominations), 11 Grammy Awards® (including Song of the Year), seven Golden Globes®, Tony®, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, New York Drama Critics, Olivier and London’s Evening Standard Awards. Honours: Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, Hollywood Walk of Fame, Doctorates from New York University and University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

HOWARD ASHMAN (LYRICS)Best known as a pivotal creative mind behind The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast (which is dedicated to “Our friend, Howard Ashman, who gave a Mermaid her voice and a Beast his soul…”) Ashman’s first love was theatre. Ashman was a founder of Off-Off-Broadway’s renowned WPA Theater, where he conceived, wrote and directed God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, as well as the classic musical, Little Shop of Horrors (both with music by Alan Menken). In 1986, he wrote and directed the Broadway musical Smile (music by Marvin Hamlisch). Lamented as a lost treasure of the 1980’s theatre scene, Smile remains popular on high school and college campuses throughout the country. Ashman’s family is thrilled that Ashman and Menken’s original songs for Aladdin, some of which were cut in the making of the film – as well as portions of Ashman’s original film treatment – have been reinstated in the theatrical production. Howard Ashman died in 1991 from complications of AIDS. For more information, please visit howardashman.com.

TIM RICE (LYRICS)Tim Rice – that’s Sir Tim to you – has been writing lyrics for musical theatre and related enterprises for more than 40 years. Patrol leader (Peewits), 1958. Credits include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita with Andrew Lloyd Webber; Aladdin, King David and Beauty and the Beast with Alan Menken; Chess with Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson; and The Lion King and Aida with Elton John. He has won numerous awards along the way, usually for the wrong things or for simply turning up. His latest musical opened in London in 2013, based on James Jones’ great novel From Here to Eternity, with music by Stuart Brayson. He is currently working on a play about Machiavelli unless he’s in Australia watching cricket. Was quite a good swimmer. Loves the Everly Brothers and Bobby Vee. More can be found (as if this isn’t enough) on www.timrice.co.uk

CHAD BEGUELIN (BOOK, ADDITIONAL LYRICS)Chad is a two-time Tony® nominee for his work on the Broadway musical The Wedding Singer (Tony® Award nomination for Best Book and Best Original Score, Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Lyrics). He wrote the lyrics for the Broadway musical Elf, which broke several box office records at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre. His play Harbor recently premiered Off-Broadway at Primary Stages. Chad also wrote the book and lyrics for Judas & Me (NYMF Award for Excellence in Lyric Writing), The Rhythm Club (Signature Theater) and Wicked City (American Stage Company). He is the recipient of the Edward Kleban Award for Outstanding Lyric Writing, the Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation Awards, the Gilman & Gonzalez-Falla Musical Theater Award and the ASCAP Foundation Richard Rodgers New Horizons Award. Chad is a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts Graduate Dramatic Writing Program.

CASEY NICHOLAW (DIRECTOR, CHOREOGRAPHER).Currently represented on Broadway as co-director and choreographer of The Book of Mormon (2011 Tony®, Drama Desk & Outer Critics Circle Awards as co-director with Trey Parker, receiving the same nominations for choreography). Other Broadway credits as director/choreographer: Elf: The Musical; The Drowsy Chaperone (2006 Tony®, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations); Monty Python’s Spamalot directed by Mike Nichols (2005 Tony®, Drama Desk & Outer Critics Circle nominations for Best Choreography). Additional New York credits: for City Center Encores! – highly acclaimed productions of Anyone Can Whistle and Follies (direction/choreography), Bye Bye Birdie (choreography) and Can-Can (musical staging); for N.Y. Philharmonic – Candide; South Pacific at Carnegie Hall (also on PBS Great Performances), Sinatra: His Voice, His World, His Way at Radio City Music Hall. He directed and choreographed the world premieres of Minsky’s at Center Theater Group and Robin and the 7 Hoods at the Old Globe.

MEET THE CREATIVE TEAMBOB CROWLEY (SCENIC DESIGN)BOB CROWLEY (Scenic Design) is an associate of the National Theatre. He has designed more than 50 productions in London including Mary Poppins (London Evening Standard Award; Broadway – Tony®, Drama Desk Awards). Other Broadway credits include: The Glass Menagerie; Once (Tony® Award); The Coast of Utopia (Tony®, Drama Desk Awards); TARZAN®, which he also directed; The History Boys (Tony® Award); The Invention of Love (Tony® nomination, Drama Desk Award); Disney’s Aida (Tony® Award); The Iceman Cometh (Tony® nomination); Twelfth Night (Tony® nomination); The Capeman (Tony® nomination); and Carousel (Tony® Award)

GREGG BARNES (COSTUME DESIGN)Broadway: Tuck Everlasting (2016), Something Rotten (2015 Tony® nomination), Aladdin (New York, Japan, Hamburg, Sydney), Kinky Boots (2013 Tony® nomination, 2016 Oliver Award), Follies (2012 Tony®, Drama Desk, Henry Hewes Awards), Elf, Legally Blonde (2007 Tony® nomination), The Drowsy Chaperone (2006 Tony®, Drama Desk Awards, Olivier nomination), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Flower Drum Song (2002 Tony® nomination), Side Show, Bye Bye Birdie. New York: The Wizard of Oz, The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, Pageant (NY and London – Olivier nomination), The Kathy and Mo Show. Regional: Robin and the 7 Hoods, Mame, Allegro (Helen Hayes Award). TDF Young Master Award.

NATASHA KATZ (LIGHTING DESIGN) Natasha Katz (Lighting Design). Recent Broadway: Once (Tony® Award), The Coast of Utopia (Tony® Award), Aida (Tony® Award), The Glass Menagerie, Motown, Follies, Hedda Gabler, Sister Act, The Little Mermaid, Tarzan®, Sweet Smell of Success, The Capeman, Beauty and the Beast and Gypsy. Extensive designs Off-Broadway, American regional theatres, concerts and permanent installations. Opera/dance include: Royal Opera House, Dutch National Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Metropolitan Opera and NYC Opera. Awards: Tony®, Drama Desk, Outer Critics, Hewes Award, Whatsonstage, Joseph Jefferson Award, Ruth Morely Design Award, National Broadway Theatre Award.

KEN TRAVIS (SOUND DESIGN) Ken Travis (Sound Design). Broadway designs: Jekyll and Hyde, A Christmas Story the Musical, Scandalous, Newsies, Memphis, The Threepenny Opera, Barefoot in the Park, Steel Magnolias. Numerous New York and regional theatres and companies including: The Old Globe, The 5th Avenue Theatre, McCarter Theatre, Seattle Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, LA Center Theatre Group, Guthrie Theatre, KC Rep, Dallas Theatre Center, Playwrights Horizons, The New Group, NYSF Public Theatre, CSC, Signature Theatre NYC, SoHo Rep, Vineyard Theatre, The Civilians, Mabou Mines, and national and international festivals and tours.

DISNEY THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS, (PRODUCER)A division of The Walt Disney Studios, it was formed in 1994 and operates under the direction of Thomas Schumacher. The company’s inaugural production, Beauty and The Beast, came to London in 1996 where it won the Olivier Award for Best Musical. First seen on Broadway in 1994, it has been produced in 28 countries worldwide.

The next Disney musical to be seen in the West End was The Lion King, which opened at The Lyceum in 1999 winning two Olivier Awards and the Evening Standard Award for Theatrical Event of the Year. Now in its 17th smash year in London, The Lion King has also toured throughout the UK.

In a co-production with Cameron Mackintosh, Mary Poppins opened in London in 2004, winning two Olivier Awards and an Evening Standard Award. Mary Poppins went on to enjoy a six-year Tony®-winning Broadway run and is currently on its second tour across the UK.

In 2014 the critically acclaimed production of Shakespeare in Love, co-produced with Sonia Friedman, enjoyed huge success at London’s Noël Coward Theatre, and a new production is part of the 2016 season at the Stratford Ontario Theatre Festival in Canada.

In addition to the company’s West End credits, its Broadway productions include Elton John and Tim Rice’s AIDA, winner of four 2000 Tony® Awards; Tarzan, now an international hit with an award-winning German production in its 7th year; The Little Mermaid, the top selling new Broadway musical of its year; Peter and the Starcatcher, winner of five 2012 Tony® Awards; and the Tony® Award-winning hit Newsies which is currently on tour across North America. The Tony® Award-winning Aladdin continues in its third smash year on Broadway.

Worldwide, DTP’s eight Broadway titles have been seen by over 133 million theatregoers and have been nominated for 59 Tony® Awards, winning Broadway’s highest honour 20 times. With sixteen productions currently produced or licensed, a Disney musical is being performed professionally somewhere on the planet virtually every hour of the day.

A TRIP TO THE THEATREA TRIP TO THE THEATREYour class trip to Aladdin should be an enriching and memorable event. Review these tips to ensure your students get the most out of their theatre-going experience.

THEATRE ETIQUETTE• For many of your students, this class trip may be the first theatrical experience of their lives. The event itself can be overwhelming; from the bright lights of London’s West End to the blackouts during the show, your students’ senses will be in overdrive. Take a few minutes before your theatre trip to tell your class what to expect. What is a programme? Are there assigned seats? How long is the show? Can the actors see the audience? What is an interval?

• Likewise, tell your group what is expected of them. Talking at the cinema is rude, but talking in the theatre is unacceptable; unlike the cinema, the performers can actually hear the audience, which also means… laugh when something is funny! Clap when you are wowed! Actors appreciate an enthusiastic (but focused) audience.

• Ask your group to turn their phones off and to keep them safely tucked away throughout the performance. Photography or recording of any kind is not allowed in the theatre.

WHEN YOU ARRIVEYou’ll arrive at the theatre early so that you have plenty of time to get everyone in their seats and settled. If you have a little time before the show begins, use it to your advantage! Remind your students of any pre-show activities you have undertaken in preparation for the show.

RUNNING TIMEAladdin is approximately two hours and thirty minutes, including one interval.

SPECIAL EFFECTSAladdin contains theatrical smoke and fog effects, pyrotechnics, strobe lighting and loud noises.

BACK AT SCHOOLThere are two education resource packs which can be downloaded from www.aladdineducation.co.uk

• Out of the Lamp: resource for primary schools – creative teaching ideas for ENGLISH, ART and DESIGN, and performance• Cave of Wonders: resource for secondary schools – teaching ideas linked to ENGLISH, Dance and PSHE

Enjoy your trip to the theatre!theatreeducationuk@disney.co.uk

Photography by Deen Van Meer

GLOSSARYAgrabah: The fictional setting of Aladdin.Arabic: The official language of many Middle Eastern countries.Ascension: The act of rising into a role of higher importance.Bollywood: An Indian film industry.Busk: To perform in public places, like the street, for tips.Castaway: A shipwrecked person.Chambers: Private rooms.Composer: One of the authors of a musical, the composer writes the music.Creative Team: The author(s), director, choreographer, music director, and designers for a play or musical.Diamond in the rough: Someone or something that has unexpected potential for greatness.Decree: An official order that carries the weight of the law.Entourage: A group of people who travel with someone of importance.Genie: A fictional character that appears in many stories who is servant to the person in possession of their lamp. The Genie in Aladdin is able to grant wishes.Heritage: A person or culture’s background. In Aladdin, Jafar questions whether or not Aladdin, disguised as Prince Ali, was born into a royal family.Hovel: A small and humble shelter.Islamic: Islam is the Muslim religion founded by the prophet Muhammed. The scripture is the Koran and the religion centres around a belief in Allah.Islamic Golden Age: A period of time from the 8th century to the 13th century in which the Islamic civilisation experienced intellectual activity and Muslim rulers established one of the largest empires in history.Lackey: An underling or follower who is treated like a servant.Lyricist: One of the authors of a musical, the lyricist writes the words, or lyrics, to the songs.Scat: A style of singing in which the vocalist improvises nonsense syllables in an effort to sound like a musical instrument.Scheherazade: One Thousand and One Nights, a collection of stories in which Aladdin originated, is framed by the story of Scheherazade, a Persian woman who is facing execution but saves her life by telling the Sultan great stories.Servitude: Another word for slavery.Sinbad: Sinbad the Sailor is a fictional and iconic character of Middle Eastern origin.Source Material: The visual, musical and literary influences of a piece of art.Stage Directions: Unspoken words in a script that tell the actors what to do on stage.Suitor: A man who is trying to gain a woman’s hand in marriage.Sultan: The ruler of a land who has absolute power.Treatment: A narrative summary of the story or vision for a film.Trespassing: Entering someone’s property without their permission.Usurp: To illegally take over a position of power.Vaudeville: A theatrical performance consisting of numerous acts, including song, dance, comedy, magic and other forms of spectacle.Vizier: A high-ranking advisor to a ruler.Western: A film that is set in the U.S. West in the late 19th century.

Photography by Helen Maybanks

OUT OF THE LAMP

Creative teaching ideas for ENGLISH and ART and DESIGN and performance from Disney’s Aladdin.

‘Salaam to you, worthy friends! Welcome to the fabled city of Agrabah! City of flying carpets, soaring heroes, famous love ballads, and more glitz

and glamour than any other fictional city in the world!’ (Genie Act 1 Scene 1)

Welcome to the primary resource for schools that are visiting the Aladdin stage show. You and your class are about to go on a wonderful journey!

The Aladdin stage show is colourful and full of dancing, music, storytelling, and fantastic costumes; it is a wonderful stimulus for creative work for all primary children. At the heart of this resource you will find eight Inspiration Cards – one for pre-show activities and the remainder based on the following creative themes:

ENGLISH and storytelling• Setting the scene in Agrabah• Creating characters for Aladdin• Working with the Aladdin story

ART and DESIGN• Drawing and modelling settings in Aladdin• Creating a character inspired by Aladdin

Cross-curricular• The costumes in Aladdin• The importance of music and dance in Aladdin• Performance• You will see that certain ideas on the cards are boxed and marked ‘Performance’ meaning that these are activities you might like to select and combine to create a production.

DESIGNED BY TEACHERSMany of the ideas have been suggested by class-based teachers as we were researching and developing the cards, so they are based on effective teaching practices and are designed with an eye toward connecting with other teaching and learning you will do with your class.

SUPPORTING MATERIALSMany of the Inspiration Cards are accompanied by worksheet templates, which you are welcome to photocopy.Please see the Background to the Show resource for extra resources such as meet the characters, a story synopsis and a glossary of theatrical terms and words from Aladdin.

PRIMARY RESOURCE: KS2

INSPIRATION CARD 1: BEFORE YOU SEE ALADDIN

Aladdin’s fictional setting draws inspiration from various countries, cultures, and imaginations, including India, Turkey, and the Middle East. Theatre makers often research the world of the play, including cultures, language, religion, and architecture in order to inspire their art.

In the theatre, part of a dramaturg’s job is to investigate such areas, and share his/her findings with the writers, actors, director and designers to help them with their work.

To help you prepare for work in your classroom after the show, here are some ideas for work and activities with your children before your visit to see Aladdin.

TO PREPARE THE CLASS FOR INSPIRATION CARDS 2 TO 4: STORYTELLING• Explore the legend of One Thousand and One Nights, also called The Arabian Nights. Aladdin is one of the stories reputed to have been told by Scheherazade to intrigue the king and keep herself alive.

• Create a story in the class with each pupil making up a sentence at a time; use ‘suddenly’ as a way to move the action on.

• Research traditional tales and stories from other cultures and compare them to the story of Aladdin and some of the other 1001 tales (e.g. Ali Baba and Sinbad the Sailor). What are the main features of these stories?

TO PREPARE THE CLASS FOR INSPIRATION CARDS 5 AND 6: ART AND DESIGN• Ask the children to find some pictures of Middle Eastern towns (e.g. Istanbul or Cairo) and deserts (e.g. the Sahara). Ask them to bring them in or look online and put them on the whiteboard.

• Use these as stimuli for a discussion about where the story of Aladdin is set.

• How might the setting be realised on the stage? What will the buildings and scenery look like?

TO PREPARE THE CLASS FOR INSPIRATION CARDS 7 AND 8: PERFORMANCE• Ask the children to think about the costumes in Aladdin. Some might have seen Disney’s animated film so will have some ideas.

• Explore what the costumes might tell us about what it is like in Agrabah. What do the costumes tell us about the people wearing them?

• In the interval, task your pupils with noting down a description or sketching two costumes.

Illustration by Edmund Dulac.

Rough animation from 1992 Disney film Aladdin©

Illustration by Edmund Dulac.

How did you research?

What did you find out?

CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS

CARD ENGLISH ART AND DESIGN OTHER LINKS

1 • Storytelling• Imagining and telling stories • Role-play • Public speaking

• Imagining scenery • Researching different settings

• DT: Comparing the features of costumes used for different characters

2 • Creative writing • Discussing and writing about settings• Role-playing a character in a setting• Re-writing a scene from Aladdin in a different or modern setting

• Drawing the view from a magic carpet ride

3 • Designing characters• Persuasive letter writing based on characters from the show

• Creating a ‘Wanted’ poster for a character

• PSHE: Guided thinking on characters and behaviour in Aladdin

4 • Story structure• Writing a beginning, middle and end• Rewriting a scene• Changing events in a story

• PSHE: Thinking about having three wishes

5 • Identifying the key features of a scene or setting • Researching • Drawing or modelling settings using a range of media • Creating a mood board to help plan and store ideas

• PSHE: Creating mood boards for personal experiences inspired by Aladdin• DT: Creating light effects for model sets• MUSIC: Creating music and sound effects for a scene• ICT: Creating a mood board

6 • Identifying character features and types in a story• Drama and role-play: Acting out a scene

• Researching and designing a character • Drawing and modelling puppets • Creating real life characters in costume

7 • Researching, planning and drawing costumes

• DT: Choosing and working with a range of materials to create a costume for a character, either a puppet or real life

8 • Drama and role-play: Acting in a scene or performance

• MUSIC: Creating music to enhance a performance• PE Dance: Creating a dance routine • PSHE: Working with different roles in a team to create and deliver a performance

KS2 CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS

The Out of the Lamp resource is designed to offer a mix of inspiring ideas and suggestions which connect to main teaching and learning themes in KS2 ENGLISH, ART AND DESIGN, MUSIC and PSHE.

We appreciate you are fully aware of the curriculum relevant to your year group, but this summary might help you in your planning, especially if you are working thematically.

ENGLISHThe heart of the resource is about helping pupils to work creatively with stories, story structures, settings and characters through discussion, reading, writing and drama. There are opportunities for public speaking and role-play and specific ideas to help with your spelling, punctuation and grammar objectives.

Specific links to the curriculum include: • Developing spoken language skills and understanding the difference between writing and speech• Improving vocabulary• Working with play scripts and other forms of writing to read aloud and perform• Predicting what might happen based on the information in hand• Creating and describing settings, characters and plot • Writing for specific purposes and audiences• Pupils performing their own compositions

ART AND DESIGNMany of the art and design activities flow naturally out of creative work the children are doing in English around settings and characters. They are encouraged to describe these orally and in writing and then to realise their imagined images using art and craft techniques.

Specific links to the curriculum include:• Produce creative work, exploring ideas and recording experiences• Become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques• Evaluate and analyse creative works using the language of art, craft and design

CROSS-CURRICULAR PERFORMANCEThe ideas in this section bring together various themes the class has been working on in ENGLISH and ART AND DESIGN, MUSIC, PE (Dance) and DT. The children complete their character development work by creating suitable costumes for the characters they have developed. They enact scenes they have written, and interpret and critique their classmates’ work. They plan a simple lighting sequence for their theatre performance and experiment with different musical and sound effects.

Specific curriculum links include:• PE: Perform dances using a range of movement patterns• MUSIC: Create and compose music on their own and with others. Perform on their own and in an ensemble using voices and instruments• DT: Design and make costumes to a brief they have written, using a range of tools and textiles to achieve their aims and the aesthetic effects they are looking for

INSPIRATION CARD 2: STORYTELLING,SETTING THE SCENE IN AGRABAH

CONTRASTING TWO SETTINGSAsk the class to contrast the things that are different about Aladdin’s home from their own. • What clues are there in the show settings that tell them what Agrabah is like (e.g. clothes or items for sale in the market)?

IMAGINE A MAGIC CARPET RIDEIf the pupils had a secret magic carpet, where

would they fly to? Is it a real place or a fantastic place they have made up? Perhaps they would choose to fly over Agrabah. Would they take

someone along for the ride? Ask them to use lots of adjectives, verbs and nouns to describe their magic carpet ride and draw what they can see

from their magic carpet.

FINDING OUT THE FACTSAsk your pupils to imagine that

the arrival of Prince Ali has set Agrabah alight and the city is buzzing! They are to imagine they are journalists gathering information so they can

write an article for a blog post or magazine. What questions would they ask? Write an article

in the third person, describing the events.

CONTRASTING THE TWO SETTINGSThe class could each pick a setting from the show and imagine they are there as a friend of one of the characters (e.g. on

a market stall in Agrabah, or sitting next to Jasmine in the palace garden) and describe

what they can see, hear, smell or touch.

PERFORMANCE: BECOME THE PLAYWRIGHTThe pupils re-write a scene from Aladdin in a different or modern setting. Can they add some new characters or events because of the changes they are making? For example: • The market scene set in a busy, modern town near your school.• The Cave of Wonders becomes an old junk shop with a mysterious shopkeeper. • It pours with rain for days in Agrabah and the town becomes completely flooded. EXTENSIONThey should also think about stage directions, which are included in the Glossary (see Background to the Show resource).

NARRATION IN PERFORMANCE AND STORYTELLINGIntroduce the concept of narration as a theatrical device to explain or introduce a scene for the audience. A narrator is often used at the beginning of a play, to describe where the action takes place. Why do the class think that narration would be needed, what could it add to the story?

Ask the class to imagine a scene from Aladdin that is taking place with no scenery, just the characters acting on an empty stage. The musical’s Director has asked them to help out by writing a piece of narration to introduce the scene before they start. How would they describe the setting, what would they need to tell the audience about it? For example, ‘It is a hot day in the desert city of Agrabah and the marketplace is full of people from the city buying food. Aladdin and his friends are getting ready to put on a show’.

NAME

Create instant ‘freeze frames’ e.g. getting lunch ready in the kitchens

in the royal palace in Agrabah or setting up the market in the town square. The other groups study the scene

and guess who is who.

One child is given a character secretly and the others guess who they are. They could provide physical clues (e.g. walking in a certain way around the class or acting in character with

expressions and gestures). You could also try ‘Hot Seating’ where a pupil comes to the front

of the class and children ask ten questions; the child in character can only answer yes or

no to questions the class asks.

Ask the class to choose a character from the show and

write a description of them. They could read out their descriptions and the

class can guess who they are.

INSPIRATION CARD 3: CREATING CHARACTERS FOR ALADDIN

TALKING ABOUT THE CHARACTERS IN ALADDINDiscuss the key characters from Aladdin. Pick one or two and write some words to describe them up on the board. Think about physical characteristics, voice, clothing, mannerisms. What are the most important things on the list and why?

GUESS MY CHARACTERWork with the children to identify nouns, verbs and adjectives from the list on the board above and explore how different types of words can be used to describe things. Then you could try some of these ‘Guess My Character’ games:

IDENTIFYING CHARACTER TRAITS AND CREATING THEATRICAL CHARACTERSAsk your pupils: in the show, how did you know which characters were good and which were bad? What clues were you given as the audience e.g. costume, gestures and behaviour, make-up, lighting, body language, accompanying music or musical motifs? Contrast Jafar with the Sultan, or Iago with Genie. How do a character’s actions help us to form an opinion of them (e.g. Aladdin keeping his promise to Genie)? Aladdin is a thief and up to no good at the beginning of the show, but we still like him. Why is that?

PERFORMANCE: CREATE A CHARACTERChallenge the children to design a new character to fit into the story. They can choose a scene to write about or use the one they invented on Inspiration Card 2. Ask the children: What does the character do, what costume would they have and whom would they be friends with? They should write a profile for them including their hobbies, favourite food, best friends etc.

DESIGN A ‘WANTED’ POSTERImagine that at the end of the show Iago manages to escape and flees across the desert. Ask the children to design a ‘Wanted’ poster that makes it easy for people to recognise him. They could have some fun doing ‘Wanted’ posters for a friend in their class too – or maybe a member of staff!

DIARY WRITINGWorking individually, ask pupils to imagine they are Aladdin or Jasmine writing in their diary after they’ve met each other for the first time in the market. What do they have in common and what is different? How do they feel about the other person?

WRITING A PERSUASIVE LETTERSuggested writing tasks for pupils, to explore their understanding of some of the characters in Aladdin:• Imagine that you are Babkak, Aladdin’s friend. What would be in a letter that would make Jasmine want to meet Aladdin for the first time?• You are Jafar and you are writing an anonymous letter to Princess Jasmine telling her why she shouldn’t marry Prince Ali. What would you say?• Aladdin realises he has made a mistake in trying to impress the Princess by becoming Prince Ali. What would he write in a letter to her which explains why he did it?

FACT FILE: ALADDINAsk the class to imagine they are private detectives and have been secretly asked by Jasmine to find out more about Aladdin after they have met for the first time. She wants to know all about him; what he is like, who his friends are, and where he is from. Imagine you are interviewing the street characters who know Aladdin. Write a report for Jasmine telling her what you’ve found out, including both positive and negative information.

PSHE: GUIDED THINKING ON CHARACTERSAladdin and Prince Ali are different characters (even though they are the same person!), so consider having your students compare them.

Do we change our character or behaviour to suit circumstances and people?

Think about how and when we change the way we behave in a day (e.g. at school, at home, with friends or with older adults).

DISCUSS/DEBATE subjects based on quotes from the show: these could be simple whole class discussions, or you could structure things more formally as a debate with motions for and against, and specific roles for everyone in the class to ensure engagement.

• ‘A diamond in the rough’ – what does this mean? Who might be described like this? Real or fictional.• ‘Like so many things it’s not outside but what is inside that counts’ – what does this mean? Is it true? You could also ask more able children to think about the lamp in this context.• Genie tells Aladdin to ‘be yourself’. Is this good advice?• ‘A lamp that changed the course of a young man’s life’ – can we change our destiny?

THE STRUCTURE OF THE ALADDIN STORYRecap the story of Aladdin. Go around the class with each pupil adding a new sentence that describes what happens next. You could start so the pupils get the idea.

MAKING AN ENTRANCEAsk the class to think about how the show began. Why do you think it began like that? Was it effective in grabbing our attention and drawing us in? Why is this important in the theatre – and in our writing? What would be other good ways to start the story just using words? Work with a partner to rewrite the beginning of the show.

Explore with the class what would happen if some scenes were

changed or removed. Ask the pupils to think of reasons why things that they

think are not vital are included in the story (e.g. to deepen understanding

of a character or event).

Ask the class to identify surprises or key moments

of change in the story.

Introduce the idea of every story having a beginning, middle

and end.

Sometimes scenes are written in from a practical performance point of view (e.g. a short piece of dialogue or a song to cover a costume or scenery change).

INSPIRATION CARD 4: STORYTELLING, WORKING WITH ALADDIN

PERFORMANCE: WRITING A NEW SCENEAsk the children to write a new or alternative scene from Aladdin. What else could happen that they would enjoy or find interesting? Some ideas you could suggest to get them thinking include:

• Jafar escapes across the desert and Aladdin and Jasmine set off on the magic carpet to try and catch him. What happens?• When Prince Ali arrives at the palace one of his elephants escapes and rampages through the garden. How do the guards catch it again?

EDITING OR REWRITING A SCENEThe children think about what happens in the middle section of Aladdin and how they could rewrite the story so it still ends in the same way, or perhaps differently. Ideas might be:• It isn’t Aladdin but Jasmine who finds the lamp. What would she wish for and how would it change the story?• Aladdin doesn’t become Prince Ali; instead he thinks of another way to impress Jasmine without using a wish. What is it and what happens?

MORAL DILEMMA: THREE WISHES – GOOD OR BAD? Explore the theme of three wishes more generally. Remembering the three wishes rules (you can’t wish for more wishes, make anyone love you or bring someone back from the dead), what would the class wish for and why? Write ideas up on the board or, if appropriate for your class, ask children to work individually and read out their three.

Would it always be good to have three wishes? Are wishes always used for good, or is there a downside as well? What’s the difference between having three wishes and winning the lottery?

NAME

In the theatre, part of a dramaturg’s job is to research the world of the play and share their findings with the writers, actors, director and designers to help them with their work. A dramaturg will often create a display board for everyone to reference during rehearsals.

TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES FOR CREATING SETTINGS INSPIRED BY ALADDIN1. Talk about the settings and scenery in Aladdin with your class. How important were they in helping to tell the story? Ask the children to name the key locations where action takes place and write these on the board.

2. Ask them to think about the main visual features of these different places. How do we know where we are? Ask them to work together to come up with some adjectives to describe the locations and how they help to identify the scene. As well as the scenery, what other theatrical components help to tell the story?

• Lighting to create moods/music to signal entrances or characters/sound effects/props.

INSPIRATION CARD 5: ART AND DESIGNDRAWING AND MODELLING SETTINGS IN ALADDIN

PERFORMANCE: CREATING A SETSplit the class into groups and have each work on one setting so that you can recreate the whole show. Ask them to research pictures and descriptions to help use as references. If the children have written a new scene from Inspiration Card 2 e.g. Agrabah is completely flooded after heavy rain, then they can work on that.

STARTING WITH A MOOD BOARD

Pupils can experiment with colour palettes and different textures of materials using resources they

bring in from home and other sources.

If you have tablets or iPads in the class, children can use those to layer up their boards, change background

colours and experiment with different images and words (e.g. black and white vs full colour).

CREATING SETSModel designs in 3D using shoe boxes or

cardboard boxes cut away on one vertical side to create a stage environment. Different groups of children measure and design their scenery

so that it can be interchanged.

Make props out of modelling clay or other materials in the classroom.

Use ICT to find and create realistic backdrops to the action.

CREATING SCENERYUse the storyboard worksheet (supplied)

to create a detailed setting, stage by stage. Pupils can start by drawing the backdrop in

the first frame (i.e. dunes and sky) then in the next the backdrop and scenery, then backdrop,

scenery and props etc.

WORKING WITH LIGHTING AND SOUND

Experiment with day and night settings and with light effects using torches and using

coloured plastic wallets as gels!

Think about how to create the moods and sound effects that will be needed in their scene

(e.g. background noise in the market). Can they link characters to particular

pieces of music?

Ask the class to create and dress settings in different ways:

PSHE: OTHER IDEAS FOR MOOD BOARDS You could suggest children create mood boards inspired by the Aladdin story but personalised to their own imagination.

• Our own Cave of Wonders• My amazing Magic Carpet ride • My three wishes

INSPIRATION FROM SCENES IN ALADDINUsing the internet and other sources children could research Islamic design, art and fretwork in more detail. They could draw minarets and domes. Try experimenting with paper cutting to create repeating fretwork effects and colour them in or stick them on to different colour backgrounds. Link with number sequences, Fibonacci and the golden triangle, symmetry and rotation.

Illustration by Edmund Dulac.

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PLANNING AND BUILDING A CLASS MODELDraw, design or build a class model of Jasmine’s palace out of recycled materials.

NAME

CLASSIFYING CHARACTERS FROM ALADDIN

Work with the class to classify the characters in the show. Who were the most impor-tant to the story and why? Think about individual characters and talk about how we learned what they were like. Did the children notice them say kind things or mean things? Did their tone of voice change? Did they always tell the truth or did they tell lies sometimes?

CHARACTER COMPARISONS

Compare two characters using delineators that the children choose using a show of hands.

For example, was Jafar:• Rich or poor?• Kind or mean?• Truthful or untrustworthy?

ASK THE CLASS

How can the audience tell that a character is good or bad? What did we see them

doing that gave us an opinion of their character e.g. Aladdin keeping his promise to Genie, or Jafar and Iago plotting behind the Sultan’s back? Apart from what they say, what are the other theatrical clues that tell us what a character might be like e.g. appearance, gestures and movement, costumes, lighting, sound effects and musical cues?

INSPIRATION CARD 6: ART AND DESIGNDESIGNING A CHARACTER INSPIRED BY ALADDIN

PERFORMANCE: DRAW AND MODEL CHARACTERSThe children create a new character or use the one from Inspiration Card 3. Ask them to think about these questions:

• Who will they be friends with? • Will they be a good or a bad character? • How will they fit into the story?• What will they look like? • How will they show if they are rich or poor? • Will they be kind or mean? How can they show that?

1. They can use the storyboard to experiment with designing their character.

2. Pupils could create a puppet of their character and some other real ones from the show, like Aladdin or Iago. If they created a new scene on Inspiration Card 2 and then modelled the set for it on Inspiration Card 5, then they can act out a whole new scene with their puppets. They could try making: finger puppets/stick puppets/shadow puppets/hand puppets

If they are working with a model set they have designed, they need to think about scale!Alternatively, the class could work together to bring their characters to life in live action by assuming the roles themselves and developing and performing a short scene.

PUPPET WORKSHEETMy character name

• Who will they be friends with? • Will they be a good or a bad character? • How will they fit into the story?• What will they look like? • How will they show if they are rich or poor?• Will they be kind or mean? How can they show that?

CHARACTER SKETCH

NAME

Rough animation from 1992 Disney film Aladdin©

INSPIRATION CARD 7: PERFORMANCE THE COSTUMES IN ALADDINTHE ROLE OF COSTUMES IN THE ALADDIN STORYAsk the class why costumes are important in helping to tell the story? Why does it help an actor to put on a costume? Discuss the role of costumes in Aladdin. To give you an idea of the importance of costumes in the show here are some facts you could share with the class:

DESIGN RULES: COSTUMES AND CHARACTERSExplore the comparisons the children made between the costumes of their chosen characters when they were watching Aladdin. What conclusions can they reach about how costumes are designed? Write some costume ‘design rules’ on the board (e.g. Swarovski crystals signify the magic in the show).

ASK THE CLASSCompare royal clothing with street clothes. If the Sultan was dressed in rags how would people know he was still the king? If Jasmine was bad and Jafar was good, how would their costumes change? When Aladdin changes into his Prince Ali costume, what difference does that make to how people think about him?

COSTUME DESIGN BRIEFIf the children have created a new character using Inspiration Card 3 then now is the time to design their costume. Remind them that when Jasmine flees from the palace she has to disguise herself as a poor girl, so her costume changes. Ask the children to design a new costume for one of the situations below or one of their own choice. If you’ve got some design rules on the board they should try to follow them:

The show’s dazzling costumes are made from over 2 million

Swarovski crystals. (2 million is the number of

seats in 22 Wembley stadiums)

Just one costume piece used in the finale of

“Friend Like Me” contains 1,428 sparkling beads.

(Almost the number of seats in the Prince Edward Theatre)

Over 350 people in 28 shops helped

to develop the costumes for Aladdin.

Agrabah is flooded. Design new wet weather

clothes for the people of Agrabah.

Imagine Jafar finally gets his wish and becomes Sultan. How would his

costume change?

Genie has got moths in the wardrobe in his lamp!

His favourite robe is ruined, design him a fabulous

new one.

Aladdin’s friends decide that they are going to pursue a career in music. What would they wear when they perform

as a band?

PERFORMANCE: GET INTO COSTUME, GET INTO CHARACTERDressing in a costume is a key part of helping pupils get into character, so you could discuss how to adapt modern clothes to give them an Aladdin feel, especially if you are working towards a performance. Some ideas to help are:• Aim for a broad colour separation between the different types of characters (e.g. the people in the marketplace have neutral earthy tones and the royals have bright whites and reds).• Use spot colour (e.g. bright scarves and feathers) to help define costumes and characters.• Kitchen aprons are a good start for the stallholders’ costumes if you are doing a marketplace scene.• Dressing gowns make great ‘robes’, especially if the children are allowed to stick decorations on them e.g. stars.• Try using old towels or curtains as sashes, headdresses or shawls to dress up a basic t-shirt and trousers costume.

EXTENSIONAsk the class to bring in samples of different fabrics. The children could each talk about their sample and what costume they feel it might be appropriate for and why (e.g. comparing a piece of velvet and a bit of cotton sheet). They could share fabric samples and stick bits to the costume designs to help illustrate the texture and feel of their clothes. This also connects to the mood board activity on Inspiration Card 5.

COSTUME DESIGN SKETCH

NAME

INSPIRATION CARD 8: PERFORMANCE THE IMPORTANCE OF MUSIC & DANCE IN ALADDINDANCE AND MUSICAL STYLESEveryone in Aladdin loves dancing – especially Genie! There are lots of different dance styles in the show including Tap, Jazz, Bollywood and Contemporary. See how many the pupils can remember and identify. Which are their favourites and why?

DEFINING CHARACTERS WITH MUSIC AND MOVEMENT Characters have particular music or movements attached to them and that helps the audience to form a picture of what their characters are like. Working with a selection of music tracks you could ask the children to decide which piece would be suitable for a character from Aladdin and then to devise some movements they could perform to match the music. Examples might include: • Jafar and Iago: creepy music and stealthy movements • Jasmine: light, lilting music and graceful flowing movements• Aladdin and the street rats: fast vibrant music and lots of energy in their movements

THE ROLE OF DANCE IN DIFFERENT CULTURESIn some cultures dancing is an important part of celebrations and formal events. Is this true of any class members? Do they know friends and family who dance: could they interview them about why they do it and how it makes them feel?

PERFORMANCE: BECOME THE CHOREOGRAPHER Create a Flash Mob and amaze everyone else in the playground by setting up a massive chorus line at break time. Could you do that? How would you organise it? What would be the best dance style to choose?

Working in pairs, the children could choose a character and work out a simple dance or movement sequence that expresses their personality on stage. If they have created a character using Inspiration Card 3 then they could use that person. Or they could invent some new moves for one of the cast members. Try to use repeating motifs to develop character. Draw simple stick people in the storyboard to plan your sequence.

Now think about the sort of music that would be best for them to move and dance to. What would it sound like? Quick or slow, staccato or rhythmic, loud or quiet?

A FINAL PERFORMANCE – CURTAIN UP!

If you have worked through the performance ideas (highlighted in the yellow magic carpets), your class should now be ready to bring all their work together in a puppet show or live action piece with dialogue, music and dance. Things to think about include:

Allocating specific roles to the children – not just the performers, but also the music and lighting teams, a director, the costume and props department. You might need a narrator to set the scene. Everyone needs to be involved in putting on the performance!

This could just be for your own class, or for a school assembly, or maybe even for an invited audience.

GOOD LUCK!